Beaver Creek

Snowboard Guide rating 8 out of 10
“Great grooming and solid steeps - at a steep price
Beaver Creek's steeps and rollers are great for freeriding, and the grooming is second to none. Beginners can also take advantage of their nationally ranked ski and ride schools. Nightlife is expensive, befitting the well-heeled crowd that prefers furs to fleece. ”

Freeriding

Freestyle

Pistes

Beginners

Mountain stats

Top lift:3488m

Vertical drop:1018m

Bottom lift:2469m

Lift count :
15 x Chairlifts
1 x Drag-lifts

Ride area 1805 acres

Easy

19%

Intermediate

43%

Advanced

38%

Total Pistes:148

Longest Piste:2.75miles

Beaver Creek is like the neighbour lady you had a mad crush on when you were a kid: impeccably well-groomed and polished but a wildcat beneath the surface. With some of North America's best grooming and softest corduroy, steep slopes with and without moguls and four terrain parks for riders of all ages, Beaver Creek is coming into its own, emerging out of the shadow of its larger and more well-known partner resort, Vail.

Beaver CreekPhoto: Jack Affleck

But the luxury of good grooming, great on-mountain staff, escalators and heated buses shuttling skiers and riders from place to place, not to mention chocolate chip cookies for all skiers and riders coming off the mountain after 3 pm, comes at a price -- and a pretty hefty one at that. Not for nothing is their slogan “Not exactly roughing it”.

Beaver CreekPhoto: Jack Affleck

At 85 dollars per day, Beaver Creek is expensive; lunch on the mountain can cost a small fortune. But the rolling runs that cater to everyone from beginners to pros, are worth it -- even if you have to go into debt to get on the chairlift.